On May 23rd Dutch singer-songwriter Dotan ended his “A Little Light in the Dark (But Bigger)” tour at Paradiso in Amsterdam. The show had sold-out months in advance, making his 10th show in Paradiso even more special. Before the show he shared on his Instagram how he had grown up near the venue, where he could see the backstage garden from his balcony. As a little 8 year old boy he told his dad how one day he would play there and today he celebrated the 10th time with his dad in the audience watching him.
For this tour he was joined by Iskander Moon from Belgium. During his set the crowd grew, getting greeted by his stunning voice right when walking into the venue. The stage was filled with instruments, of which an acoustic guitar and piano stood ready for Iskander. An incense stick was burning on the piano, filling the venue with the aromatic smell. During “Like A Home Without You / Everything” the fans put their flashlights into the air, creating a beautiful atmosphere. A few girls at the front had been to a few shows prior and seemed to really love Iskander, singing along with the lyrics and even bringing signs that said “Who is Dotan?” and “We’re here for Iskander Moon.” Iskander really took in everything, looking around the balconies and visibly appreciating everything that was going on.
Half an hour later the lights dimmed, now indicating it’s time for the main event of the evening. The five guys that make up the band walked out on stage first, taking place behind their instruments. The back of the stage was filled with all sorts of instruments, with all men playing multiple instruments throughout the evening. Dotan walked out to loud cheers and started his set with “Carry On,” while playing on his small banjo. Just like the men in his band, Dotan himself also switched his instruments out after every song.
Playing at Paradiso is unlike playing at any other venue, as this one includes stained glass windows and two stunning layers of balcony. The balconies reach all the way to the side of the stage, getting an intimate view of the show. Dotan gave his attention all around the venue, turning to the sides during the songs to sing directly to them as well. His eyes glistened as he took it all in, which shows that even if he has seen this same scenery nine times before, he will never get enough of it.
Since he has toured all over the world, he does not only have Dutch fans. Some people shouted if he could please talk in English, to which he responded that the crowd “would kill him.” Dutch people might speak English very well, but are also very blunt and can get upset if it’s spoken in a setting where most people speak Dutch. He tried to translate a few sentences, but quickly forgot about that as well.
A few unreleased songs also made its way onto the setlist, with “Golden” up first. This song has never been played live before, but the audience seemed to really enjoy it and clapped along happily. Later “Last Goodbyes” was played. Before the song started Dotan said how this might become the first single of the upcoming album, depending on how the audience reacted to it. After the song ended the crowd started chanting for it to be played again, which they happily did. Everyone on stage was already smiling during the first time, but their smiles only grew bigger playing it again. Fans once again chanted for it to be played again when it ended, but Dotan found twice to be enough.
During the whole tour they did one song with the whole band together around one microphone, also asking Iskander Moon back to the stage. For today’s show it was the song “Amsterdam,” which of course fit perfectly with the show being in that city. Their voices all sounded amazing together and this moment made the concert feel very intimate. Until one person dropped their hard plastic cup, which made a lot of noise and got a few people laughing softly. Despite this, hearing a song so raw and pure is amazing to witness.
For the song “7 Layers” he wanted to make it even more intimate. A spotlight was pointed into the middle of the venue and he asked fans to make a circle around it and sit down so the people at the back could also see what was happening. He made his way to the now empty circle and asked for everyone to be quiet and watch out for their cups after the little incident earlier on in the show. Some people then thought they were funny and about five cups were heard falling to the ground one after another. When it was finally quiet, he played the song with just his guitar and no microphone.
The last song of the evening, “Home,” has been released well over 10 years ago, but is also the song that kick started his career. The fans had been waiting to hear this one live, even setting up a fan project where they held paper hearts in the air that said ‘You are our home.’ The second the drum was set up on stage, the cheering started. Even after having the song on the setlist for this long, Dotan did not seem to get tired of it. The song has been gaining attention again with the equestrian side of TikTok, blowing new life into the song. With bright smiles all throughout the venue, the set came to an end. On the way out of the venue, Dotan was standing near the exit, making time to take photos with fans and sign their newly acquired merch.
GALLERY: Dotan with Iskander Moon at Paradiso in Amsterdam, Netherlands (May 23, 2o25)
